Smuggling and terrorism are among threats Israel's navy confronts in protecting the nation's coastline. Suicide boat attacks, in particular, are an ever-present concern, one that could have devastating consequences for sailors and ships. Is a fishing boat that strays into a restricted area harmless or a deadly explosion waiting to happen? Safely determining the nature and intent of sea-borne confrontations is driving Israel's navy to test the benefits of unmanned surface vehicles (USV). In the process, Israeli manufacturers are elbowing their way into an increasingly crowded sales arena, seeking a share of a USV market that hasn't fully surfaced.

"The suicide boat attack was the impetus for the development of the USV," says Giora Katz, head of the naval and electronic warfare directorate at Israel's Rafael Armament Development Authority. Over the last couple of years, USVs such as Rafael's Protector have expanded into other mission areas. "Soon, maritime security could resemble an English hunt, with a few hunters running packs of hounds," he says. The "hounds" in this case will be USVs. And with a growing array of capabilities, they are about to be unleashed.

Israel's navy has been evaluating Protector for the last couple of years and keeping tabs on other domestic and foreign USV technologies for much longer. According to international press reports, Protector is operational for customers in the Mediterranean, Persian Gulf areas, Southeast Asia and off the Horn of Africa. Katz confirms that Rafael has signed international contracts for the USV, but cannot discuss customers or operations.

Sources say Israel uses the USV, presumably off the Gaza Strip and near Lebanon, something the navy neither confirms nor denies. In fact, the Israel Defense Forces and the navy recently stopped commenting on USVs altogether, citing "sensitive issues."

Navy officials, however, including the outgoing materiel chief, Rear Adm. Omri Dagul, say the service does not yet have a USV program. It provides some logistics and personnel for testing the systems, while focusing on the development of requirements, doctrine and concepts for their use.

Rafael still considers the navy "a customer" and will not say much about local Protector tests and performance. The company, however, wants to keep Protector on what it perceives as the inside track in a local, perhaps international, USV race by promoting the system whenever and wherever it can. "This is not just an unmanned, remote-controlled boat," Katz says. "Protector is an unmanned integrated naval combat system."

Katz contends that USVs are like missiles, in that a company benefits from having a majority of capabilities in-house, such as engines, guidance and warheads. Rafael's ability to provide Protector's structure, navigation, communications, sensors and weapons, and integrate everything from within, sets it up to better compete in the USV arena, he adds.

Rafael's highly (but not fully) autonomous, remote-controlled Protector features its Mini-Typhoon stabilized machine gun system, the teeth of the USV's anti-terrorism force-protection package. On the sensor side is Toplite, the company's stabilized multi-sensor optronic payload comprising third-generation Flir, CCD camera, correlation tracker, laser rangefinder and optional target designator.

The platform can be 9-11 meters long (30-36 ft.) with a diesel engine and water-jet propulsion. Rafael demonstrated the 9-meter version on both U.S. coasts last year in an attempt to woo the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard and other American customers. Katz says the demonstrations were a success. "Policy is not to talk about potential deals, but the response was very good . . . there was a lot of interest."

Rafael has outfitted its Lightlink non-line-of-sight communications system on board Protector, supposedly enabling it to work and transmit telemetry data, video and audio without degradation or relay from behind an obstacle, such as a ship. The company's focus is now on additional mission modules that allow Protector to support operations in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare, electronic warfare, mine warfare and countermeasures, and maritime and port security, Katz says.